


Stakes To You ||Part 2||

by TroubleTributes



Series: Stakes To You [2]
Category: Panic! at the Disco
Genre: Alternate Universe - Supernatural Elements, M/M, the thing where pete's the bad guy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-15
Updated: 2014-12-15
Packaged: 2018-03-01 15:52:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 14,453
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2778920
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TroubleTributes/pseuds/TroubleTributes
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff"><p>YAY THEY LOVE EACH OTHER<br/>So I'm not entirely sure if I should write another part to this, I'm tempted but i'm not sure<br/>We shall see</p></blockquote>





	Stakes To You ||Part 2||

Okay, so maybe Brendon thought Ryan look cute while he was sleeping, he was even snoring a little and his hair was falling over his face and he looked comfortable and-… Brendon really needed to stop this habit of staring he seemed to develop since he met the other boy. "H-Huh?" Ryan stirred awake, sitting up almost instantly and looking around. Fuck, he fell asleep. He sighed, clearly irritated with himself before nervously looking around. "What if someone recognizes me?" he whispered, looking towards Brendon. There was a slim chance of it happening, but he was still scared.

"Unless they’ve seen you while you’re having one of your ‘demon episodes’ they won’t. I wouldn’t have even known you were a demon had I not had an exact description." Brendon tried to reassure him even though he probably wasn’t doing the best job. "You’ll be fine. I promise." He pulled out the key and got out, walking around to Ryan’s side.

Ryan sighed lightly and got out of the truck, running a hand through his hair. He wasn’t used to these types of surroundings, all of the tall buildings and cars speeding away on the streets had made him feel uneasy. He looked up at Brendon and then over to the building. “Is there where you live?”

Brendon laughed a little nervously, looking back at the old apartment complex. It really wasn’t as shitty on the inside as it was on the outside. “Yeah... I told you it wasn’t the best place in the world. So uhm, wanna go inside?” He nodded towards his door, playing with the key in his hand. Ryan nodded, walking towards the building along side with Brendon. He had been so cut off from society that he didn’t even know what all of this was. It was throwing off his whole thinking process, but he tried to ignore the fact that everything was so different from life as he knew it.

He smiled, leading the way through the hallway and up a flight of stairs to get to his door, unlocking it and pushing it open for the other to follow behind him. “And I present to you Casa Del Urie.” Brendon said jokingly, gesturing towards the living room.”

"I thought you didn’t know any other language," Ryan laughed lightly as he walked in. It was a bit small, but it was way bigger than his little old cabin. He strolled in, looking around and immediately becoming intimidated. "What...” he said quietly to himself.

"I know a few words, that’s all... What’s wrong?" Brendon asked, looking around to try and find exactly what Ryan was looking at before realizing that this was probably completely knew to him. He began to wonder what he actually did know about; he seemed to know a lot of things back in the forest.

"I... Nothing...” Ryan said honestly as he continued to walk through the apartment, looking around the room at everything Brendon had. "I haven’t seen any of these things before," he answered honestly as he made his way to the living room. He sat on the couch and held his legs to his chest.

"Oh. Well they’re all pretty standard issue." Brendon said, moving to sit down beside him, not really knowing what to say. "Do you want something to drink or anything?" _Do demons eat and drink?_ Oh well, at least he was trying. "Water, if it’s not too much trouble." he said, keeping his eyes looking around. Ryan knew he was probably suppose to get used to this, he’d have to if he wanted to stick around but right now Ryan was trying to just calm down.

Brendon nodded and walked to the kitchen, he had honestly felt bad for him. The boy looked like he was about to bolt out the door and back to the forest any second, it really wouldn’t surprise Brendon if he did. “Here you go.” He held out a glass of water to him, waiting for him to take it before sitting back down. “Are you okay?” He asked carefully.

"I’m fine...” he murmured, thanking him for the water and drinking some. “It’s so different...” he said softly, sighing as he looked towards Brendon. "I’m sorry if I’m acting like a child... I don’t mean to."

"No, don’t worry about it. I mean I’d be a little nervous too if I were you, so don’t feel bad." Brendon said with a wave of his hand. "I could show you around the house if you want; if it’ll help you get a bit more comfortable?"

"Y-Yeah, we can do that." he nodded and sat his glass down before standing up. "If you don’t mind," he added on once again, not wanting to be a bother.

"I wouldn’t have offered if I didn’t want to." Brendon said with a smile and stood up, "Well obviously this is the living room slash kitchen." He gestured toward the connected kitchen that really only had a fridge, a microwave and a microscopic stove. "My room, the spare room, and the bathroom is down this-a-way." Brendon led them down a hallway with three doors and walked to the door of each bedroom just to let Ryan see them, not bothering with the bathroom. Ryan followed him throughout the house, examining almost everything throughout the place. He kind of liked it here, it seemed safer.

"I hope it’s not too messy for you, I’m not the most organized person in the world." He laughed, running a hand through his hair.

"Eh, it’s okay." Ryan shrugged and looked up at Brendon. He smiled a bit, feeling a bit more at ease now. "Thanks for bringing me here." he said honestly.

"I’m glad you’re here, it’ll be a nice change... At least for now, anyways." Brendon smiled back at him. He meant it, Spencer was always busy so he didn’t get to see him all that often and everyone else didn’t much like the whole ‘hyper activeness’ so he was thankful to have Ryan here.

"What do you mean for now?" he wondered as he walked into the bedroom and sat down on the bed, bouncing slightly and smiling a bit like a child.

Brendon leaned against the doorway with an amused look on his face from how he was bouncing. “Well I mean, I’m assuming you’d want to go back...” He explained, but he really wouldn’t mind if Ryan stayed

"No, I just got here." he frowned and looked up at him. Sure he was nervous but he wanted to explore more, to find out more about how Brendon lived and how it was different from his own.

“No, no. I didn’t mean today. You can stay as long as you want.” Brendon explained quickly, “What I was trying to say is that it’ll be nice to have you here.” He had no idea what he wanted to go do; Brendon was literally the worst person to be giving a ‘tour’ of the city, or civilized things at the very least but the last thing he wanted Ryan to do was leave.

"Oh," Ryan smiled slightly and nodded in response, "I’m kind of glad I’m here too. I’m sure this life style will be... Interesting." he mused as he looked around his room. "I’m still iffy about this but I’m willing to give it a go."

He grinned, “With me around, it’ll be nothing but interesting. I am the king of all things ‘interesting’…Well, either that or I’m weird but I like to think positive.” Brendon joked and moved to sit beside him. “Well first things first, what do you want to do? That is if you want to do something right now.”

He shrugged his shoulders and rested his head on Brendon’s shoulder. “Whatever you wanna do.” Ryan said quietly, seeming a bit tired still. Ever since he started to hang around Brendon, he felt way more relaxed, not to mention he hadn’t slept so much and so well in years.

Brendon looked down at him and smiled gently, trying not to move around too much so Ryan wouldn’t think that Brendon wanted him to move. “If you’re tired we can lay down?” He suggested, suddenly realizing he said ‘we’. “Or you could lay down if you want to be alone.” he said quickly, blushing lightly

Ryan chuckled softly and shrugged his shoulders, “I’d rather have you lay with me... I’d feel safer.” he said honestly, looking up at him, matching the blush on Brendon’s cheeks with his own.

"Sounds good to me, it’s never not a good time to sleep." He joked, leaning into Ryan slightly before moving up the bed and pulling the blankets down for the two of them. Even if he wasn’t extremely tired he would be content to just lay there next to Ryan.

Ryan chuckled and lay down beside him, waiting for Brendon to lie down before pulling up the blanket and looking towards him. He kept his distance, still nervous around Brendon. He wasn’t sure what kind of friendship they had, or if it was more than that? Brendon noticed the distance between them and smirked, “Oh no.” He paused, “Don’t think you can try and get out of cuddling that easily. Get over here.” Brendon said lightheartedly, waiting to see if Ryan would come closer.

Ryan chuckled softly and smiled a little, moving closer to Brendon like he asked. He liked the idea of cuddling, it gave him an excuse to be closer to Brendon. As soon as the though crossed his mind, his eyes widened slightly. Did he really just..? Oh no. Brendon didn’t see his eyes widen and just let his arms wrap around him, going slowly in case Ryan didn’t want him to. He sighed contently, he couldn’t help but think of how nice this was to just be with someone like this, and thought that maybe - _maybe_ \- Spencer might have been right about how he felt towards Ryan, even if he didn’t know himself at time.

Ryan groaned quietly and nuzzled into the crook of his neck, loving the warmth between him. “Thank you. It means a lot that you haven’t... Killed me yet,” he said softly. It was funny to think that they had only met because Brendon was supposed to kill him, it wasn’t very funny at the time but looking back at how they were compared to how they were lying in bed together as of now…That was a little funny.

He just pulled him in closer and nodded, not really knowing what to say to that, he never would’ve forgave himself if he hurt Ryan; especially now that he knows all that he had to deal with. “I’m glad I listened to you.” Brendon finally said after a while, keeping his voice quiet. Ryan smiled softly against his skin, nodding his head softly instead of responding. He sighed contently and closed his eyes and slowly drifting off to sleep. Brendon laughed softly at how fast he had fallen asleep almost silently, as he felt the other’s breath start to even out.

He lay there next to him just thinking and this wasn’t a stupid thing to do… Or at least not really, so why not? Brendon pressed his lips to the top of his head lightly, his fingers absently playing with his hair but still being careful to not wake him. Ryan let out of a small groan at the feeling of his lips, but he wasn’t woken by it. It had been years since he felt so comfortable around somebody else. He had only known one person who he cared for so much, but he rarely ever spoke of them, it only made Ryan get overly emotional and just brought up bad memories. Brendon pulled away slightly but kept his hand lightly in his hair, letting his eyes close as he felt himself start to drift off into sleep. This time around Brendon wasn’t the first to wake up, he had no idea how long they’d slept but he wasn’t used to getting this much sleep, he’d never felt more relaxed in his life, or at least in a long time.

Ryan stirred a while later, fluttering his eyes open and staring up at the other who still appeared to be sleeping. He was so gorgeous, perfect as a matter of fact. Of all the things he could’ve stared at, he looked at his lips. He gnawed at his bottom lip, wanting to just feel what they were like against his own. Brendon just grinned stupidly at him, blinking a few times to try and clear his vision; after all he was still half-asleep. Brendon thought he saw Ryan looking down at his mouth but he was probably wrong, for all he knew he could be dreaming right now. Ryan didn’t even notice Brendon open his eyes, he was too distracted by his lips. Taking a leap of faith, he leaned forward and kissed him gently. He wouldn’t wake up, right?

Ryan was wrong, that definitely woke him up completely. Brendon was surprised but instead of pulling back out of shock he leaned into it and maybe even kissed him back. “Morning to you too.” He mumbled quietly, a blush already forming on his face.

Brendon’s lips were so soft, it was just like he had imagined. He was even kissing back... Wait, he was kissing back? Ryan heard his words and instantly jumped back, “I-I.. Uh,” he sputtered, moving back a bit too much and ended up falling off of the bed.

Brendon was a little slow whenever he woke up so it wasn’t all that surprising that instead of rushing to his side he just rolled over to the other side and peered down at Ryan on the floor. “Geez, Am I really that repulsive when I wake up?” He asked jokingly, offering a hand to him, “You okay?”

"I-I’m fine," Ryan insisted as he sat up and rubbed the back of his head. He felt so embarrassed. He couldn’t believe he actually woke up because of it, he fucked up. But he did kiss back, what did that mean? That is if it even meant anything at all. He groaned quietly, he was over thinking this too much, Ryan always had a habit of over thinking these things.

Brendon smiled, almost whispering when he spoke, "Good, because I may or may not would like to kiss you again and it’d really suck if you went and hurt yourself." He said before he could stop the words. Surely he didn’t have much to worry about if Ryan kissed him first, right?

Ryan blushed softly, sitting up and climbing back on the bed. He bit his bottom lip and moved closer, “Come here...” he said quietly, leaning in and kissing Brendon softly once again. Brendon slowly sat up leaning on his elbow, hesitantly moving forward into the kiss as if he was unsure if Ryan had really meant it. After a few seconds he had managed to settle into it slightly and began to move his lips languidly against the other’s lips. Ryan’s heart was beating out of his chest as he continued to move his lips against Brendon’s. He smiled softly, wrapping his arms around his neck lightly to pull him closer. He couldn’t believe what he was doing this, but he didn’t regret it. Brendon lifted his other hand to Ryan’s side and parted his mouth slightly, he didn’t want to rush this. He tried to ignore the fact that he was- might- be getting feelings for a demon, friends were fine but feelings? That was never an easy thing for Brendon, it always ended up getting him hurt. Ryan almost kept going, but he unwillingly moved away and looked down. He frowned softly, “I-I don’t know if this is right...” he whispered quietly. He was scared that this would go bad and he didn’t want to lose Brendon so quickly.

Brendon stared at him for a moment but then bit his lip and nodded slowly, sliding over to give him some space. He knew that Ryan had a point, this probably wasn’t right. At all. It would just end badly for the both of them. ”I understand...” He said, avoiding his eyes.

Ryan watched Brendon move away, suddenly feeling a vaguely familiar feeling in his chest. He dropped his gaze and sat up, turning away from the other. “I-I’m sorry, I’m just scared…” he said quietly.

"Don’t be sorry, I’m a little scared too." Brendon admitted, clearing his throat. "It’s not your fault." He shouldn’t have kissed back, he shouldn’t have fucking kissed back and now look what’s happening because of it; he should’ve just pretended to still be asleep.

"I just… I." Ryan began but then shook his head. "I... I can’t lose you like I-" he began but then stopped almost instantly as if he wasn’t supposed to say something like that. He closed his eyes and sighed quietly, "I didn’t know you’d wake up," he admitted.

He glanced over at him out of the corner of his eye, didn’t want to pry but he assumed that something had to have happened before to make him like this. “I kinda was awake before what happened.” He shrugged and offered a small smile, trying to cover up what he was feeling. Brendon sometimes blew things out of proportion and this was most likely one of these things.

"I don’t want to lose you." Ryan said softly, looking over to him and frowning. "You’re the only person who’s cared about me enough to actually take care of me within the past few decades... I’m sorry, I-I mean I really liked the kiss. It’s just…" he trailed off.

"We both really liked it but we just can’t do it again…" Brendon finished for him, nodding slowly. He’d had people do this before to him, trying to say things like that in an attempt to spare his feelings. At least that’s what others have told him. "I’m not going to lie though, I do care about you."

"No..." he began to reply but stopped. He nodded his head and frowned, "I care about you as well. T-That’s why I’m so scared..." he admitted.

Of all things he had to start liking the closet-gay demon, he knew he was an ass for thinking it but he thought that was the reason why Ryan was acting like this. The ‘I really like you but I’m not gay’ situation used to be a common thing for him and apparently it still was, it’s part of the reason why he just stopped trying to find someone. “Scared of getting close to someone or scared of me?” Brendon asked carefully, keeping his voice quiet.

"G-Getting close to you..." he said softly and kept his gaze away from him. Brendon was practically a teddy bear; Ryan wasn’t scared of him a bit. "I can’t… Lose you," he whispered quietly, biting his bottom lip.

Brendon sighed and stayed silent for a few moments to think, “Then I’ll just have to make sure you won’t.” He finally looked over at Ryan, “Trust me.” He smiled gently, being vaguely reminded of their conversation when they first met.

Ryan sighed softly, remembering the words. If Brendon could trust him, Ryan knew he had to trust Brendon. “I do trust you, but I just can’t.” He turned back to him. “I’m sorry for uh, kissing you without asking,” Ryan said quietly, not knowing if it was rude or not.

He shrugged, “Don’t worry about it...” ‘It was nice while it lasted’ he didn’t say, not wanting to start anything. Once again he was stuck not knowing what they had together, that is if they had anything at all. Brendon sighed and let himself fall face first into his pillow.

Ryan looked down, standing up and feeling as if he wasn’t welcome anymore. He sighed and walked out of the room, his eyes beginning a glow a faint blue. Brendon felt Ryan get up off the bed and debated on calling after him but decided it would be best to just leave him alone to think for a while, he needed to do the same anyways. He had no idea what he was going to do now, he told Ryan that he wouldn’t lose him but he didn’t know if he could go around pretending this didn’t happen. Ryan didn’t like being cramped in this tiny space, he needed to go outside. He glanced back towards the bedroom before shaking his head and walking out of the apartment to explore on his own, which was probably a horrible idea. Brendon laid there for as long as he could take staying still, which was only about half an hour, before walking out of the bedroom. “Ryan?” He called out, looking around. It was a small apartment; there aren’t many places that he could be hiding.

Ryan was already walking around to see what he could find. When people tried to talk to him, he used a different language as a way to avoid conversation. These people made him nervous; he didn’t know when someone would recognize him. Once Ryan thought he’d seen enough, he turned back around and expected to just remember how to navigate his way back to Brendon’s home. It wasn’t that easy, tons of people flooded the streets which made it harder for Ryan to even attempt to remember the turns he had taken. He began to panic, everyone’s voices speaking into little devices and to each other were louder than he would’ve liked. How did he not notice this before? He retreated to a corner where he sat down with his knees to his chest, trying to clear his mind so he could remember how the hell to go back.

Brendon wasn’t going to lie, when he didn’t find Ryan anywhere inside, he was starting to get a bit worried. Who knows what could happen to him, nearly everyone in this city was an asshole. He slide on a pair of shoes and went outside to look for him, walking along the sidewalk a little faster than he normally would. Brendon continued to look through the endless crowds of people for a familiar face. After a few minutes of searching and no signs of Ryan anywhere he began to get a little frantic. He’d lost someone in a giant city, he’d lost a _demon_ in a giant city. Brendon fucked up. “Of all places you decide to go explore a fucking city with a shit ton of people?” He grumbled to himself. He shoved his hands in his pockets and walking faster, beginning to start calling out for him; he really didn’t care about the weird looks he was getting from people anymore.

"B-Brendon?!" Ryan called out in response once he heard the other’s voice. He stood up, trying to look over the crowd of people. Once he seen him, he sighed in relief. "I-I’m so sorry... I just thought I should’ve left for a little while and then I got lost and I-" he rambled before trailing off and looking down. He felt like a little child who was in trouble.

Brendon sighed in relief when he saw Ryan and pulled him into a quick hug, “Hey, relax.” He said softly, pulling back and lifting his chin up so Brendon could look at him. “I’m just glad I found you… You really had me worried for a while there.”

Ryan looked up at him and frowned slightly, “I’m glad you found me too... I almost lost it.” he said, resting his head on his shoulder and frowned. He felt guilty for just leaving like he did, but he was glad Brendon didn’t seem upset with him.

"The important thing is that you were able to control it." Brendon wrapped his arms around him again and squeezed gently, he couldn’t help it. "Why don’t we head back to my apartment and just hang around there for today? You look like you’ve had enough of this place for one day."

Ryan nodded in agreement, “Please… I don’t want to be in this crowd anymore.” he said quietly, keeping his head down. He never thought he’d be this intimidated by a group of people.

Brendon gave him a small smile and nodded, taking his hand and trying his best to lead him through all the people by walking in the least crowded areas. Any other time he probably would’ve been ecstatic because hand-holding? Hell yes. ”I didn’t mean for it to seem like I was ignoring you earlier.” He said dismissively when they walked through the door, “If you’re hungry or thirsty, let me know.”

"I know, I just felt like shit." he admitted, frowning a bit when Brendon let go. He looked up and nodded, "I’m a bit hungry..." he said softly, his stomach growling.

He felt a little bad knowing that he probably had been the one to cause that but nodded anyway. “I have pizza if that works, it’ll take about 15 minutes to cook though.” Brendon said, walking over to the fridge and looking through it.

"Pizza?" he asked as he looked over to the other. He raised an eyebrow, never having heard of what he was talking about. "I don’t know what that is," he said honestly and laughed.

Brendon found himself laughing along with him, he’d forgotten about that. “Pizza,” he paused, pulling out a box of frozen pizza from the freezer. “Also sometimes known as ‘heart-attack-in-a-box’, is one of the greatest things on the planet. I guarantee it’s amazing.”

"Well I can wait 15 minutes," he smiled and nodded. He was distracted by everything else in the house, not familiar with everything. He stood up and began to picking up and poking things around the room. Brendon nodded, opening up the box and putting the pizza in the oven before setting a timer. He leaned on the counter and watched Ryan while he waited with an amused smile on his face. “You having fun over there?” Brendon teased.

"Huh? Yeah," Ryan shrugged it off as he leaned down to inspect the radio. He pressed the power button and as soon as it blasted music, he jumped back instantly. He starred at it for a moment, before stepping back and messing with some of the buttons.

He covered his mouth with his palm to try and hide the fact that he was giggling, “That’s just a radio.” Brendon explained after he stopped laughing. “It won’t eat you.” He continued to watch Ryan poke around at all of his things.

He playfully glared over to Brendon, “I’ve never seen one. Don’t judge.” he said, turning back to it and turning it off. He continued to wonder until he seen books, immediately intrigued and walking over to them.

Brendon rolled his eyes playfully, “Rude.” He teased, waiting until he heard the timer go off and pulled out the pizza, leaving Ryan to mess around with the books. He got out paper plates -it wasn’t lazy, it was just easier- before cutting it and getting a slice for himself and Ryan. “Viola, I present to you a piece of heaven.” He joked, bringing them over to the couch.

Ryan walked over and inspected the food, seeming a bit skeptical about the pizza. “It tastes good, right?” he asked, picking it up.

Brendon raised his eyebrows, “Do you really think I’d be eating it right now if it didn’t taste good?” He laughed and took a bite, “I’m pretty sure you’ll like it.”

He shrugged a bit and then took a small bite, his face lighting up slightly at the taste. Wow, he’d never eaten something like this before. “This is really good,” he commented, taking another bite.

Brendon waited for him to say something as he took a bite and nearly laughed at the expression on his face, “What’d I tell ya?” He nudged his side, “Amazing right?” Sure Brendon might have been exaggerating because it was only frozen pizza, but still.

Ryan nodded with a smile, “I’ve never had anything like this. It’s great.” he said and continued to eat. He never ate anything than what he could scavenge up in the forest, this was ten times better. Brendon just nodded with a smug look on his face.

“You’re welcome.” He took another bite of his piece and leaned back on the couch, “There’s also drinks in the fridge if you want ‘em.”

He shook his head, “I’m okay.” he said, finishing up his piece and looking over to Brendon. He couldn’t get what happened earlier out of his head and it was distracting.

Brendon didn’t say much for a while, and he didn’t notice it at first but the longer he looked at Ryan the more he looked like he was kinda out of it. “Hey,” He nudged his foot with his own, “What’s wrong?”

"I just..." he hesitated before finally just coming out right. “I can’t stop thinking about nice your lips were." he said, his face flushing almost instantly.

His eyes widened in surprise, he definitely wasn’t expecting that; or at least not him being that straightforward with it. “Oh um, thanks?” Brendon blushed, quickly trying to cover it up, “You know yours weren’t half bad either.” he winked at him jokingly.

"I apologize for the way I freaked out... I just, I didn’t know you were awake, and I didn’t want you to get mad." he said with a small nod. He really liked Brendon, more than he should have. The only thing that stopped him was the possibility that Brendon would have to kill him at some point.

Brendon paused for a moment before speaking in a low tone, “Well… I won’t get mad and I’m awake now?” He tilted his head slightly, his gaze flicking back and forth between his mouth and his eyes. Brendon figured he had nothing to lose by hinting at it even though they’d already been through this before, he wouldn’t stop trying that easily though.

Ryan blushed softly, noticing his hints. He bit his bottom lip and moved a bit closer to him on the couch. This was bad, he shouldn’t have been doing this. Right now, he could care less. He leaned in and kissed Brendon softly, smiling against their lips. Brendon smiled into the kiss as well, bring his hand up and gently placing it over the other’s cheek. Hand-holding and two kisses all in one day? He was just on a roll today, though somewhere in the back of his mind he hoped it wouldn’t end up with them avoiding each other like it did before. Ryan’s cheeks turned a bright red as he did so, practically melting into his touch. He never would’ve thought he’d end up kissing a hunter. He pulled away, resting his forehead against Brendon’s with a small smile.

"Y’know for someone that’s lived in the forest for most of their life, you’re a damn good kisser." Brendon chuckled softly, leaning forward and pressing his lips lightly against his before pulling away again with their foreheads still touching. The words _‘I might be falling for you_ ’ replaying over and over in his head.

He blushed softly and giggled at his comment, “That’s one thing I didn’t learn from a book.” he said honestly, wrapping his arms around Brendon’s waist. “You’re not too bad yourself,” he said playfully.

"Oh I know. I’m like, the god of kissing." Brendon laughed, moving his arms to wrap loosely around his neck. He didn’t think of the ‘hunter and demon’ thing, he couldn’t care less about that really; though it was floating around somewhere in the back of his mind but he was going to ignore it for now. "Books can only teach you so much, take pizza for example." he grinned.

"I’m sure there is a book about pizza," he chuckled, resting his head on his shoulder. He liked the feeling of Brendon so close to him, he felt ironically safer around him.

"But have you read a book about pizza? I don’t think so." He said before sighing happily, "This is really, really nice." Brendon leaned back more so that Ryan was more or less lying on top of him, just to see what he would do.

"I haven’t, though I think it’d be pretty boring." he chuckled and blushed slightly he laid back. Ryan relaxed into his touch and just stayed close, nodding his head in agreement. "It is..."

Brendon was glad that the other didn’t have a problem lying like this, to be honest it was comforting to him. “And in reality, pizza isn’t boring at all. My point has been made and proven.” He said smugly, laughing quietly as he did so.

"Whatever," he chuckled and began to trace random shapes on Brendon’s chest. Was this normal for people who were just friends? Ryan wasn’t sure. He had read thousands upon thousands of shitty romance novels, and this was beginning to look like one.

Brendon tried to stay still and not laugh anymore, he was ticklish and the light touches on his chest weren’t helping much. He slid his hands to Ryan’s sides to see if he was ticklish at all, he seemed like he could be the type.

Ryan gasped slightly, his hands pulling away and looking at Brendon. “W-What was that?” he asked at the unfamiliar feeling. No one really came close to him like Brendon, so he’d never knew he was ticklish.

Brendon actually giggled at his reaction, “Apparently you’re ticklish, which means…” he paused before moving to tickle him again, he was genuinely amused by this.

Ryan laughed in response, trying to move his hands. “N-No! Stop it!” he giggled uncontrollably.

Brendon snickered at his reaction, stopping not too long after he’d asked him to. “Who would have thought that you were ticklish? Personally I find it highly amusing.” He teased.

"That’s not nice," Ryan whined, curling up and leaning against him again. "You’re mean..." he chuckled softly and closed his eyes.

"Guilty as charged," Brendon grinned and held Ryan in place by wrapping his arms around him. "But I can also be really nice too… You know that."

"Yeah... I know," Ryan said softly, his eyes suddenly had a slight yellow tint to them. When Ryan was highly emotional, his eyes changed colors and it made it complicated for him to hide what he was feeling.

"Ryan..?" Brendon asked cautiously in case he did something wrong when he saw that his eyes had changed, so far he only knew his eyes went red but not yellow. "Are you okay?"

"Huh?" he asked, looking at him with slight confusion. "Y-Yeah, I’m fine. Why?" he inquired. He realized it must’ve been his eyes, quickly covering them and hiding his face into his chest. "They changed color, didn’t they? Shit.” he hissed.

"Yeah um, they turned yellow. Is that a bad thing?" He asked curiously, Ryan still seemed to be acting normal so it couldn’t have been that big of a deal. Brendon looked down at him as he hid his face, he couldn’t tell if it was out of embarrassment or something else.

"No, no... It means that I’m just really happy." he explained, a slight blush on his cheeks. He was hoping Brendon wouldn’t have noticed and be freaked out by it. There wasn’t much Ryan could do to hide it.

Brendon smiled down at him again, “Oh, well I’m glad that you’re happy.” He leaned forward and lightly pressed his lips against his forehead, “Happy is a good look for you.”

He grinned, nuzzling into the nape of Brendon’s neck and sighed contently, most of the embarrassment having disappeared. “You’ve been the only person to make me truly happy in a long, long time…”

Brendon couldn’t help but to smile. “You deserve to be happy.” He whispered into his ear and relaxed back against the couch, “And for the record, your eyes are _really_ fucking awesome.”

Ryan shivered slightly, blushing even more now at his words. He chuckled lightly and smiled, “Kinda... It’s a bit annoying, it’s hard to hide how you’re feeling sometimes.”

"Yeah, I guess that would be the down-side to it. But you could always just say you have colored contact thingies." He shrugged, staring up at the ceiling as he talked and reaching his hand up to run his fingers through Ryan’s hair softly just out of habit. Ryan was about to ask what that was, but then just shut up. He smiled softly, nuzzling into his hand like a cat would. He loved being so close to Brendon, it was comforting.

"You make a really nice blanket y’know, very warm." Brendon teased and laughed quietly; he was afraid to be too loud, like it might ruin the moment. "Hey Ryan, can I ask a question?" He asked a couple minutes later, his tone suddenly switching to serious.

"Well thank you, I try." Ryan laughed lightly and nuzzled into his neck. "Yeah, go ahead…" he muttered quietly.

Brendon hesitated for a moment but figured it be best to just say it instead of avoiding it, “Before you said that you didn’t want to lose me like you lost someone else…You’ve started to mention it a few times actually, who were you talking about?” He asked carefully

Ryan froze up at the thought but then moved away almost instantly. He retreated to the other side of the couch and looked away from him. “I... It was a really long time ago...”

"Hey, wait…" He tried to grab hold of him whenever moved away. Brendon sat up slowly, a worried look on his face “I don’t mean to bring up any bad memories…I was just wondering, if you don’t want to talk about it then that’s fine.”

Ryan shook his head slowly, "T-There was someone kind of like you. He found my cabin and we ended up being really close. He promised to never hurt me...Which is why I was so hostile to trust you when you showed up..." Brendon brought his knees up to his chest and listened quietly, nodding every now and then for him to continue. "He told me he was an explorer and said he went all around the world. We spent a lot of time together and eventually ended up falling for each other. Well actually, I fell for him. He lied to me and then tried to kill me in my sleep…"

“Ryan…” He immediately felt bad for the boy, it explained how he acted around him sometimes. “You know that I’d never even think of doing something like that to you, right? Never.” Brendon moved closer and tried to get him to meet his gaze

Ryan locked eyes with Brendon, tears evident in his eyes. “I had to kill him, Brendon… I-I had no other ch-choice... I don’t want to have to end up doing that to you.” he whispered, fear clearly in his tone.

Brendon let his arm drape over his shoulder as he pulled him into a one-armed hug, “You won’t have to, I promise…” He said softly. “I’m not gonna let anything like that happen again.”

Ryan fought back the tears, hiding his face in Brendon’s shoulder. “I don’t know if I could handle that if it did.” he muttered and kept him close. “Thank you.”

Brendon noticed what looked like tears in his eyes before hiding his face, he pulled him into his arms completely and held him close. “It’s okay.” He whispered, rubbing his back softly.

He gripped on to him tightly, frowning and trying to calm down. He was scared of getting so close to Brendon; he couldn’t take losing Brendon. Even though they met a few days ago, Ryan felt really close to him. Brendon almost regretted asking about it, he hated to see Ryan upset like this. It was unreal how attached he was to the boy from just spending a few days together, he never would have expected feelings to come into the picture when they first met. "I’m sorry." he said quietly, staying close into Brendon. "I-It shouldn’t affect me," he said, sitting up and wiping his tears quickly. He looked down at the floor, "I’m okay. I’m okay..."

"Don’t be sorry. If anything I should be sorry for bringing it up. I’m glad you were able to tell me though, thank you for trusting me." Brendon let him sit up and gave him a small smile

He nodded and smiled a little, he was thankful Brendon was so understanding about everything. Ryan looked over to him and leaned in, kissing his cheek gently. “You’re really sweet.”

Brendon smiled widely, leaning into it a little bit.“Well, I do try.” He laughed quietly, turning his head to the side slightly to kiss the corner of his mouth.

“You’re really sweet too.” Ryan chuckled softly, adjusting himself and laying his head on his lap. He wished it could be like this all the time; he wished he could be with Brendon forever.

“Are you comfortable down there? I’ve been told that I make a great pillow.” He laughed, carding his fingers through his hair. And no Brendon wasn’t weird, it was just that Ryan’s hair happened to be insanely soft.

Ryan smiled and hummed contently, closing his eyes. “Yeah, you do…” he murmured, instantly relaxed. Brendon stayed silent after that, he couldn’t tell if Ryan was going to sleep or just that relaxed, either way he didn’t want to disturb him. He’d never been so relaxed before in his life, Brendon always forced himself to work so he could keep busy. He hated to be completely alone all the time. At least with hunting he didn’t have to think about it.

"Why did you start hunting?" Ryan asked, opening his eyes but staying where he was. He didn’t want to strike a nerve, but he was curious.

“In the beginning I did it because that’s what my family had always done… It’s not that I actually really wanted to. In fact I used to be terrified of monsters and things, I worked out of it though in time.” He took a breath, “Then my brother and sister they were…killed, I guess would be the right word, during a job. That’s where it kinda turned into hunting for some type of revenge, now I just do it to keep busy.” Brendon shrugged, it wasn’t so much a sensitive subject anymore but sometimes it still bothered him a bit.

”Oh.” Ryan said and sighed quietly. “I’m sorry about your siblings, I would’ve protected them if I was there,” he reassured Brendon. He knew some of these demons were assholes to humans, but sometimes he couldn’t really blame them.

Brendon smiled softly at him and nodded, knowing that he most likely meant it. ”Thank you, I appreciate that. It’s been a few years since it happened but it’s always still there in the back of my mind in some way, you know..? Don’t know why, it just is.”

"Yeah... I know how that is. I kinda forgot about the people I was around," he admitted, feeling a bit ashamed. He didn’t even remember his parent’s names. He felt guilty.

"Well in your defense, you have been around a lot longer in order to forget. It hasn’t been that long for me." He saw how Ryan began to look a bit guilty. "Don’t make yourself feel bad about it."

"Yeah, I know. Just wish I remembered," he said honestly. "I replaced all of it with things I learn from books."

Brendon narrowed his eyes in confusion, “I didn’t know that was actually possible.” He said more to himself then anything. “Don’t you have like some kind of power to help you remember? I know some demons can do it sometimes.”

"No. I don’t have things like that," he said, looking up at him. "I know it’s weird, but I just remember I was trying to block out some kind of pain..."

Brendon nodded, “Well reading books is a lot better way of trying to block out pain than what most people do, I’ll give you that. It’s a lot less self destructive.” He decided not to ask much more about it in case Ryan didn’t want to talk about it. He looked up at him once more and sighed a little, reaching up to play with Brendon’s hair. He was always kind of hypnotized by Brendon’s appearance. It was a bit strange. Brendon had kind of zoned out until Ryan began playing with his hair, he immediately smiled. “Does my hair still have enough ‘floof’, as you like to call it?” Brendon laughed, looking down at him fondly.

"Always," Ryan chuckled and smiled towards him. "Your hair is just nice to touch," he said and continued to run a hand through his hair.

"It’s not as soft as yours though," Brendon closed his eyes and leaned his head down a little, he’d always loved it whenever someone would start playing with his hair. It helped relax him more than anything

"I don’t understand how. I don’t do anything to it," he murmured, smiling when Brendon seemed more relaxed. He was adorable

"Maybe it’s just you then." He opened his eyes and looked towards the window seeing it was completely dark outside, he hadn’t realized that much time had passed while they sat here talking. "Do you wanna go lay down? We don’t have to sleep if you don’t want to but just to be a bit more comfortable."

“But I don’t wanna get uppp," Ryan whined playfully, smiling innocently up at Brendon. "You should carry me," he suggested with a playful wink towards him.

Brendon rolled his eyes playfully, “You’re just so needy aren’t you?” He said exaggeratedly and chuckled. “Carrying you can be arranged, I’ll try not to drop you.” Brendon teased, reaching his hands up under Ryan before standing up and walking to his room. “Victory is mine!” He set him down and quite literally bounced around to the other side.

"I am," Ryan chuckled and wrapped his arms around Brendon’s neck for support. "I can use the excuse that I’m old," he added on with another laugh. Ryan cuddled under the sheets of the bed and sighed. "No you can’t, you look like a teenager. You’re excuse is invalid." He teased and crawled in beside him, snuggling up to Ryan’s side without a second thought.

"Don’t judge a book by its cover," he whined, nuzzling into Brendon’s neck and sighing lightly. He never understood why he was so comfortable here, but he didn’t really think there was another reason besides Brendon.

"You would know about not judging by a cover, all you do is read." Brendon covered his mouth as he yawned, "I’m always so tired now, and I blame you for being so warm and comfy all the time." He poked him on the shoulder

"I’m sure you don’t mind," Ryan commented, chuckling softly. He never experienced a relationship with someone like this in his lifetime and he loved it.

“Oh not at all, it’s quite nice actually...” Brendon let his head rest on Ryan’s chest and smiled as his eyes fell shut, clinging onto his shirt gently. “M’sorry if I’m clingy.” He murmured

"Doesn’t matter... I like feeling you so close," he whispered and kissed his neck lightly before nuzzling his nose into the crook of it. "You’re adorable..."

“Good ‘cause I wasn’t going to stop being clingy anyways.” Brendon grinned when he felt Ryan nuzzle the crook of his neck, absolutely loving the feeling of being this close to someone. “Have you seen yourself? You’re the adorable one.”

"I’ve seen myself in water, yes." Ryan answered, unsure if he was suppose to be answering the question seriously. He smiled and stayed close to him, liking the feeling of Brendon’s warmth.

Brendon chuckled, “It was a figure of speech.” he said slowly, he was so relaxed that he was starting to drift off even if he was trying to stay awake. Brendon didn’t know why he started sleeping so much lately, he figured it was because he had someone to cuddle with.

"Oh," Ryan chuckled lightly and smiled. He noticed Brendon was starting to fade off, so he kissed his cheek and closed his eyes as well. "Night..." he whispered quietly.

"Night…" Brendon murmured sleepily, pulling him impossibly closer and smiling faintly when Ryan kissed his cheek.It wasn’t long before Brendon was completely asleep. At first he was fine but then Brendon had started to dream. Ryan was sound asleep, keeping close to Brendon. He was happy that they were together, he hated being alone in his old little hut. The thought of leaving Brendon was just unfathomable.

Brendon shifted slightly in his sleep, he hadn’t dreamed about the thing that hurt his family in months, he assumed the reason it was happening now was because he’d brought it up earlier. _Brendon was alone in a room and couldn’t move, his brother and sister huddled in a corner with a demon standing over them, a knife twirling in his hands. He tried his best to call out for them, to scream, to get help, to do something other than just stand there. The demon had now turned to face him but he couldn’t make out his face until he began to walk closer and come out of the shadows, and it looked a lot like Ryan..? Why would it look like Ryan? Brendon struggled to move as the demon approached Brendon with an evil smile on his face, “No…” He mumbled, shaking his head slightly, struggling even more when he looked back over to his siblings to see them lying on the floor with cuts across their skin._

Ryan felt Brendon beginning to move a bit more than usual. He stirred, groaning a bit. “Are you okay..?” he asked groggily. He sat up, frowning slightly and looking towards Brendon whenever he didn’t answer him. “Brendon..?” he whispered, gently shaking his shoulder. He was scared, was he okay?

_The demon began twirling the knife again, seemingly planning to do the same thing to Brendon as he did to his family. “Leave me alone!” He shouted, desperately trying to escape with him coming closer and closer by the second. Without warning the demon appeared at his side, almost instantly drawing the blade lightly across his collar bone, the dark red blood dripping down his pale skin before pointing it to his chest over his heart and just waiting._ The knife had began to pierce is chest at the same time Ryan shook him, causing him to jolt awake with wide eyes. He was breathing heavily from the shock, tears immediately forming his eyes as he checked himself for any sign of being cut. He hadn’t realized it’d been a dream until there were no marks on his skin.

Ryan tilted his head slightly, frowning as he saw Brendon jolt awake. “Are you okay..?” he whispered softly, wondering why he was so scared.

“I-I dreamed about them and it tried to kill me…” Brendon said, swallowing hard as he clutched the blanket to his chest, “I could feel everything... the cuts, the _blood_.” He knew he probably wasn’t making much sense at all right now.

Ryan frowned, wrapping his arms around him. He felt horrible for Brendon even though he didn’t understand what was going on. He rubbed his back gently, sighing quietly. “It’s okay. It was a dream.”

Brendon flinched at first, still seeming quite jumpy but soon relaxed a little bit, burying his face in Ryan’s chest. “I thought I had managed to forget what it all looked like, I don’t want to remember Ryan, I don’t...” He whispered shakily, biting back the urge to just cry himself out. The nightmares had died down years ago, he didn’t understand why they had all of a sudden reappeared.

"It’s okay..." Ryan whispered softly, kissing the top of his head and continued to rub his back in small circles to try and relax him. He wished there was more he could do, but he would have to wait for Brendon to calm down.

He nodded, trying to calm himself down and steady his breathing. ”I know it wasn’t real and you wouldn’t do anything like that…but it just looked like you.” _And you were fucking terrifying._ Brendon said quietly, finally managing to get his thoughts together again. “I’m sorry.”

"Relax." he whispered softly and kissed his cheek gently. He sighed quietly, "Do you need anything..?" he muttered, tilting his head slightly.

"Just you." Brendon murmured, wrapping his arms around Ryan and squeezing him tightly, he dug his nails into his own arm behind his back to remind himself that this was all real. That nightmare had seriously scared him, it was the kind of thing that scared him when he first started this, the fact that it was about his family only made it worse.

Ryan pulled him onto his lap and cradled him close, tucking his head under his chin. “I’m right here. No one’s going to hurt you, I swear...” he promised, kissing his cheek gently and sighing.

He smiled faintly, he had always loved to be held and right now it was the best thing to help him relax. They stayed silent for at least fifteen minutes before speaking again." “I’m glad you’re here, I trust you.” Brendon snuggled as close to him as he could possibly get and sighed, “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome." Ryan said quietly and leaned his head against his. After a minute or two, he chuckled a little. "The only reason I knew what to do is because I read about it..." he whispered with a giggle.

"You read about it?” Brendon asked and couldn’t keep from smiling, feeling safer and content just by hearing Ryan’s laugh, “Oh my god, I’m falling for a nerd.” He rolled his eyes playfully though it probably couldn’t be seen in the dark room and kissed him lightly.

"Yes. It’s a book called _Explanations of Human Emotions_.” Ryan informed, laughing a little and smiling. He kissed him back, suddenly feeling at ease.

Brendon bit his lip lightly when they kissed, not to start anything but just to see his reaction, “That’s for being a nerd.” He teased when he pulled away, “But just know that I find it highly adorable.” He blushed softly, not really recognizing this feeling.

He touched his lip where Brendon bit down. He looked at him and chuckled softly, “Well good because you’re stuck with me.”

"I wouldn’t say I was stuck with you. Stuck isn’t the right word for it, it’s more like…Privileged maybe?" He lay back down and pulled Ryan with him, "I’m sorry but I’m a romantic." Brendon laughed

"Privileged?" he asked, laying down beside him, looking down and trying to understand. No one has ever told him that they felt privileged by knowing him. He turned a bright red and buried his face into his chest. "Thanks..." he murmured. It meant a lot to know that Brendon really did care.

"Well of course," Brendon said like it was obvious, holding him close. "You’re sweet, you’re cute, and you’re an adorable little dork. My three favorite things." He kissed his forehead gently, knowing that he was probably embarrassing him by now.

"Brendonn," he whined, keeping his face hidden. "Stop it," he pouted. He sighed after a moment and then looked up at him. "I’m really glad I met you." he whispered.

Brendon laughed and mimicked his tone, “But whyyy? It’s cute when you’re embarrassed, you get all blushy.” He poked at his cheek when he looked up. “Me too... This is the happiest I’ve been in a long time.” Brendon smiled fondly.

"No it’s not, my face is as red as a tomato." Ryan whined and smiled softly when he spoke. "I never thought I’d find someone like this again..."

"I doubted that I’d ever even find someone, I mean with this life you don’t exactly get that happy ending everyone dreams about..." Brendon sighed and leaned down to kiss him slowly and softly, "First time for everything though."

"I guess so." he whispered, nuzzling into him with a small smile. "I’m glad I get to spend this time with you." he mumbled.

"You make it sound like you’re going somewhere.” Brendon laughed, “So…" He began, trailing off momentarily. "Are we like, together now?" Brendon asked quietly with a hopeful look in his eyes, he didn’t know if Ryan was still scared to do this. "I mean…Yeah, if you want to be." Ryan said softly, running his fingers through Brendon’s hair lightly.

He wasn’t as afraid anymore, knowing that he would do anything to protect Brendon. Brendon smiled widely and hugged him tightly, burying his face in his neck and pressing his lips lightly against his skin as his way to say thank you. “Good, I’m glad.” He said softly

"Mhm." he murmured, liking the feeling. He continued to run his fingers through the other’s hair, smiling softly. He never would’ve thought they’d go this far.

Brendon relaxed even more and just enjoyed being this close to him, staying quiet for a few minutes before speaking, “We should do something soon, I know it’s only been the first few days that you’ve been here but there really is a lot more than just annoying crowds of people talking on their phones.”

"I-I don’t know... I’m still scared," Ryan muttered and sighed quietly. He was still iffy about even staying in the city. "The only reason I stay here is to be with you..."

Brendon pulled back to look up at him, he knew that Ryan wasn’t used to it but he didn’t know that he was only staying because of him. “Why didn’t you tell me? We could’ve gone back.”

"I didn’t want you to leave because of me," Ryan said and frowned, looking down. He felt guilty now for not saying anything.

"I wouldn’t mind if you wanted to go back, I understand, that’s your home." Brendon pulled back a little and took his hands, squeezing them reassuringly. "I probably would want to go back too if I were you."

“I-I don’t want to go back a-alone.” Ryan said quietly and looked away from Brendon. “I can’t go back to being alone again...” he whispered, his voice shaky.

“No, no, no. I’m not gonna make you go back alone.” Brendon shook his head furiously and placed a hand on his cheek to turn Ryan back to face him, “I meant I could go back with you...If you wanted? I wouldn’t leave you alone again.” He whispered, kissing his forehead softly.

Ryan looked up at him, his eyes a light yellow as soon as he says that. “R-Really..? You would do that for me?” “Of course I would. You know that I would” he replied, staring into Ryan’s eyes in the dimly lit room, “I made a promise and I’m going to keep it.” Ryan bit his tongue, knowing he shouldn’t have said what he was thinking. He just leaned in and kissed Brendon passionately. _I think I love him..._ He thought to himself.

Brendon kissed him back without hesitating, almost immediately reaching around to stroke his hair. “You are so important to me, Ryan…” It wasn’t ‘I love you’ but had a feeling that was definitely close to what he had felt for the boy.

"Y-You’re really important to me too, Brendon..." Ryan whispered softly, holding the other close to his chest.

He held his hands against Ryan’s chest, clinging to his shirt and sighing contentedly. “You know I felt bad for waking you up at first but now I’m kinda glad I did.”

"I’ve gone hundreds of years without sleep... I can last without it for a couple hours," he said softly and kissed his forehead gently. "Just relax and go back to sleep for now. It’s still early." Brendon nodded and did exactly that, relaxing against him and just listening to the sound of his steady breathing as he slowly drifting off to sleep while leaning against Ryan’s chest.Ryan hummed a small lullaby he remembered from a long time ago, hoping that would help Brendon relax more, even if he was falling asleep Brendon seemed a bit on edge somewhere in the back of his mind. He smiled, leaning down and nuzzling his face into his neck. “You’re comfortable…”

He smiled faintly as he heard Ryan humming, “Why thank you, It’s part of my irresistible charm.” Brendon said sleepily, tilting his head slightly to give him more room.

"Apparently," Ryan chuckled softly and stayed close. He closed his eyes, finally relaxing and managing to sleep for a few more hours before being woken up by hearing a loud knock on the door. At least it was light outside this time, he sat up straight and looked towards Brendon who had been woken up as well, creasing his brows.

Brendon narrowed his eyes, wondering who the hell would be here this late- or this early- he didn’t even know what time it was. “I have no clue...” He answered the unspoken question before pulling himself away and getting up off the bed.

"S-Should I stay here?" he asked nervously. Ryan wasn’t sure who Brendon was friends with. Hopefully it was just that Spencer guy again, at least he was kind of nice to him.

Brendon was about to respond when his door opened suddenly, it definitely wasn’t Spencer, it had been so long since Brendon had seen him that he was hardly able to recognize him. It was another hunter and he was pretty sure his name was Pete but he didn’t know why he was here, especially when they basically hated each other. “Excuse me? Would it kill you to not barge into my room? There’s this thing called calling ahead or leaving voicemails you know.” He said dryly

"Save it, Urie. Would you care to explain why that _thing_ is living with you and why the hell you were just in bed with it? You were supposed to fucking kill it, not have some kind of fucked up relationship with it.” Pete glared towards Brendon and then at Ryan. Pete and Brendon were never on the best terms, they hated each other even on their good days.

Ryan quickly got to his feet, retreating to the other side of the room. He was on high alert, his eyes glowing a faint red as he stared towards Pete. “I-I’m not a thing!” he protested, eyes darting back and forth between him and Brendon.

"You don’t understand-" Brendon tried, seeing the look on Pete’s face and stepping in between the two of them. He didn’t want to go through this again, maybe that’s why Ryan was scared to do this with him, it was because everyone that Brendon knows has threatened him or offended him so far.

"Take care of him or I will." He growled, the expression on his face showing that he was entirely serious. Pete was almost always hostile towards anyone, he had hardly any tolerance for people, let alone demons.

"Don’t you dare." Brendon said harshly, his eyes suddenly going dark as he stepped closer towards him and shoving him back. “If you so much as think about touching him, I swear to god I will-”

"I-I really don’t want to hurt you," Ryan said nervously, interrupting Brendon to try and calm them both down. "But I will if you attack first..." he warned, keeping his back towards the wall.

Pete took a step back and mostly ignored the both of them, only focusing on how Ryan said he’d fight back. “See? He said it himself, he’ll hurt me.” He pointed at Ryan as he spoke.

"Only if you hurt him first, that’s out of self defense! Look, this isn’t a problem so why can’t you just leave?" Brendon glared at him, “Nobody is doing anything wrong here.”

Pete scoffed “Self defense, right…What happened to you? If this had been a few months ago you’d have killed him on the spot. Hell, if this had been a few months ago _you_ would have killed you on the spot for doing something this utterly stupid!”

Ryan’s heart began to pound harder as his eyes began to glow a bright red, knowing Pete was now clearly a threat. “Leave.” he growled, glaring towards him and moving towards Brendon protectively.

Brendon shook his head and tried to push Pete backwards again, even if he was shorter Pete was also stronger than him. He refused to think that what he was saying was true…Back then things were going crazy, and he was already slowly trying to get out of it even before he met Ryan so it didn’t matter anymore.

“Do you not see him? His eyes? He’s a demon, Brendon... Demons are evil and they kill people, they kill innocent people. They killed your family, do you really think that’s a good idea to be letting your guard down around something like that?” he gave a quick glance towards Brendon but kept his eyes on Ryan most of the time in case he decided to attack, when Brendon didn’t say anything back he finally snapped. “I’m fucking ending this.” He drew out his gun and aimed it at Ryan, not giving Brendon any time to react.

“No, you only started it. I’m going to be the one to end it.” No one could ever explain what Ryan was capable of, but he was strong. Without even flinching, the gun flew out of Pete’s hand and to the other side of the room before he was able to pull the trigger. Ryan was completely gone by now, stepping away from Brendon and moving closer towards Pete with a wicked grin on his face. “Anything else you want to throw at me?” he inquired as he clenched his fists and focused onto his throat as he forced Pete against the wall without even touching him. “ _Don’t fuck with me_.” he growled. Brendon stood there shocked and speechless of all that had suddenly happened, he didn’t know what to do other then stand there with wide eyes.

Pete had gone for his knife the second his gun was knocked out of his hand but that was quickly taken away from him as well. Pete could handle his weapons flying across the room... Just not being held against the wall and choked like he was now, “A-Are you just gonna let him do this?” He rasped out, eyes darting towards Brendon while he clawed at his throat, desperately trying to rid himself of the pressure holding him against the wall.

Ryan’s invisible grip tightened, clenching his jaw. “Swear you’ll never come back here again.” he demanded. “Maybe I’ll let you live if you answer correctly...” he said in a low tone. Ryan didn’t even remember that Brendon was in the room, watching him and probably scared out of his mind, but he knew after this he would surely collapse from too much use of his power.

"...Fine. Fucking fine, I-I swear.” Pete said as clearly as he could manage with the almost unbearable force closing in around his neck, now glaring at Ryan and obviously struggling for breath. He would’ve been throwing every insult he knew at him if he could speak. Brendon still couldn’t move from where he was standing, even if he could make himself move it wouldn’t do any good. He had no idea what he would even do.

Ryan let him go and stepped back. “Get _out_ ,” he growled, pointing towards the door. There was clearly some sort of force filling the room that Ryan had control over. He wasn’t going to let this piece of shit ruin what he had with Brendon.

He nearly fell to his knees as he was released, coughing furiously from the burn in his throat. Pete didn’t say anything more until he stood in the doorway and looked at Brendon over his shoulder, almost laughing at the expression on Brendon’s face, “Don’t say I didn’t warn you. He will kill and there’s nothing you can do to stop it.” he mumbled before slamming the door behind him. As soon as the door shut, the tension was gone and the room was suddenly silent. Ryan’s eyes slowly faded back to their normal color while he swayed in place for a moment before finally collapsing down to the ground and passing out.

Brendon’s skin was a pale white as he silently made his way to Ryan’s side, picking him up and moving him onto the bed before sitting down on the opposite side, hugging a pillow to his chest and staring at the wall. He had been scared, of course Ryan had been protecting them both but even still. Ryan was shivering and flinching as he woke up a few minutes later, his vision completely blurred at the moment. He understood why Brendon was horrified, Ryan was too. But he was mostly scared because he never remembered what he did. Tears streamed down his face and he began to whimper, knowing Brendon was scared of him now.When Brendon looked over at Ryan to see him shaking, shivering, and even crying, he reached down to pull blankets over them and wrapped his arms carefully around his waist. He held him close with no emotion on his face and just let Ryan cry, unsure if he wanted him to do anything else. "S-S-Sorry," Ryan stuttered, whimpering softly. "I-I didn’t m-mean to…" He cried, trying to calm himself down as he continued to shake. He never wanted Brendon to see him that way; he never wanted something like this to happen.

Brendon shook his head, “Shhh…Just rest.” He said quietly, “I understand and it’s okay.” _Even though it probably really wasn’t_. Ryan was his friend, they cared about each other, they’ve cuddled and they've kissed each other and the last thing Brendon wanted to do was be scared of him. But he just couldn’t help it right now, that underlying fear of accidentally setting him off was there no matter how much he didn’t what it to be.

Ryan knew Brendon was scared and it only made him cry more. He was a monster, and he couldn’t help that, this was the exact reason he had kept himself locked up in the cabin all that time. It was to protect other people from him. “It’s anything but okay...” He cried, curling up and moving himself away from Brendon. He didn’t deserve his affection or his comforting touch. He felt sickened by his actions, even if he couldn’t remember what it was that he’d done. This was the usual reaction Ryan had whenever he lost control of it. He cried each time because he knew he was better than that. He knew there should’ve been some way to stop all the murders that he’d done without meaning to. Now he was back in that state, vulnerable and just as scared as everyone else, but the only difference was Ryan wasn’t able to escape it by just running away.

Brendon felt his heart ache as he laid there and listened to him cry, he doubted there was anything he could do at that moment to help anything. He turned on his back and stared at the ceiling, “He tried to shoot you… You were only defending yourself. You even gave him warning.” Brendon explained, suddenly remembering how Ryan said he never remembered these things. Maybe if he knew- and if Brendon forced the thoughts into his own head- then things wouldn’t be so bad. “You let him go, you let him live…”

"T-That’s a first..." He whispered quietly, his cries slowly turning into small hiccups every now and then but his body was still shaking violently. "I-I know you must b-be scared… I-I’ll sleep on the couch." He said shakily as he began to force himself to sit up right.

Brendon did nothing to stop him until he had sat up, “I am, a little bit.” He admitted and grabbed his wrist firmly to keep Ryan from going any further. “But that doesn’t mean I think you should leave.” Brendon didn’t think that being alone would help either of them right now.

Ryan was about to flinch away before calming down and keeping his eyes away from Brendon. “I... I didn’t ever want you to see me like that... I-I’m really sorry.”

"Just rest, okay? You’re shaking really badly still." Brendon pulled him back to lie down next to him. "It’s not your fault. It was his, don’t blame yourself." Brendon was trying to convince himself of this as well. Ryan glanced up towards Brendon for a moment before looking away quickly. “Y-Yeah…” he muttered, trying to think about anything other than what just happened.

Brendon kept his face carefully blank when Ryan looked up at him, it was something that came easily enough, after all he’d had to pretend since he was a kid. He had to keep telling himself that Ryan was still Ryan and he had no idea what he was capable of if what he did to Pete was just letting him off easy.

Ryan’s shaking finally stopped and he laid completely still next to Brendon. He didn’t know what he was going to do, but he knew he couldn’t live in this society anymore. He swallowed the lump in his throat before rolling on his side away from the other. “I-I’m going back to the woods…” He nodded his head even if he couldn’t see.

“Am I going back with you?” Brendon asked timidly, turning to stare at the back of his head looking for some kind of reaction. “I-I still like you, and I really care about you, I just-..” _I need to get used to this_.

"You just what? Just are scared? Confused?" Ryan asked not meaning for his words to sound bitter, looking down at the floorboards. "I-I care about you too, Brendon. I just don’t want to go through this every time this happens..." he murmured. "Whether you come or not is completely up to you."

Brendon was tempted to ask if there was an ‘all of the above’ option but kept his mouth shut. “I don’t want it to happen every time either and I’ll be honest with you... I guess I just have to get used to the fact that that’s what happens.” He reached his hand out to rest his hand on his waist, not to pull him closer but just to be there.

Ryan stiffened up at the feeling, nodding his head at his response. “Like I said, the choice is entirely yours.” he said softly.

"I’d like to go with you. Eventually." He added on a bit more quietly, "I just need time to… You know, to like tell Spencer and stuff. But I can take you back whenever you want." At that point he just knew he was making excuses.

"Stuff... Yeah," he said quietly to himself and nodded his head, "I want to leave today." he murmured. Ryan knew staying was a bad idea.

Brendon took his hand away and sat up slowly, he knew what it sounded like but he would go back with him. He _would_ , “You could take some of my books if you’d like, I know you were looking at them when you first got here.”

Ryan shook his head, “No, those are your books.” he murmured. He sat up as well and sighed a bit. He stood up, stumbling lightly but steadying himself. “I’m fine...” he insisted before walking out. He needed to splash some water on his face. He had the urge to help him but didn’t follow, instead he just stared at down at his own hands.

Brendon hated how they went from what they were to this awkward…thing. "I’m sorry." He said to nobody in particular and sighed.

Ryan straightened himself out and sighed. He looked in the mirror in the bathroom and noticed his sudden hint of yellow in his eyes had vanished and was replaced with a dull gray. He frowned, looking away. He needed to just calm down, maybe leaving wasn’t such a bad thing. He walked out and went to the bedroom, standing in the doorway. “When do you want to leave?” he asked quietly.

"Whenever you’re ready. I don’t want you to stay here any longer than you don’t want to, especially since you said you’ve been wanting to leave for a few days now.." Brendon only managed to look him in the eyes for a second before having to look away. He felt so guilty for all of this. "Hey, what’d you think of an actual mirror instead of the reflection in a lake?" Brendon asked with a small laugh, trying to do something other than sulk.

Scary was what Ryan wanted to say, but he knew Brendon was trying to bring up the mood. He forced an amused smile on his face. “It was much clearer than the water.” he chuckled and nodded.

Anyone could see that Ryan’s reaction was forced but Brendon decided to just ignore it, “Give me a second to change.” He stood up, exhaling shakily and stepping past Ryan to get to his dresser before getting out clothes and going to the bathroom. When he came back out he still looked like a mess. “Ready?” Brendon asked softly.

He nodded his head, “Yeah. Let’s get heading out...” Ryan said quietly and sighed. He really didn’t want to leave Brendon, especially know that he would be alone again, but he wasn’t going to back out now. He followed him downstairs and into the car. He sighed and looked out the window, his hand shaking slightly but out of nervousness.

Brendon couldn’t bring himself to speak at all during the time in the truck, this was his fault and the worst part of it was that he couldn’t stop thinking. He parked the truck in the same place as when he first came here, “W-We’re here.” Brendon’s voice wavered involuntarily.

Ryan couldn’t stop starring at Brendon the whole ride, while Brendon pretended he didn’t notice it. He wanted to make sure he remembered his face, with all the beautiful features about him. He nodded, “T-Thanks.” he murmured as he opened the door but stopped before he could step out. He took a leap of faith and turned back, cupping Brendon’s face and kissing him passionately. After a moment, Ryan pulled away and sighed, giving one last look at Brendon. “Sorry. I just needed that...” he said before getting out of the truck and closing the door. Ryan glanced around, trying to remember the way as he wondered back into the woods without looking back.

Brendon didn’t even have to think to kiss him back, it was normal to just automatically kiss him now, but it felt like it was over before it even started. He didn’t even get a chance to speak before Ryan was walking away. Brendon felt tears forming in his eyes as he watched him slowly disappear, he knew he was going to come back sooner or later, it would be impossible for him to stay away but with the way things were going it seemed like Ryan didn’t even like him anymore aside from the kiss.

It only took an hour or so to arrive back to his cabin. Ryan frowned, glancing back towards where he came. Some part of him expected Brendon to follow, but he knew that he wasn’t going to. Tears began to form in his eyes once more and he sighed, walking into his cabin and looking around. Once he plopped down onto his bed, tears immediately streamed down his face.

Brendon stayed unmoving for what seemed like hours just staring into the trees but in reality it was only about thirty minutes. Part of him said go after him and the other part said go home, as much as he hated it, the part that said go home won. By the time he’d gotten home to his room his cheeks were wet from tears, he wanted to stop feeling like this. Meanwhile Ryan had practically torn up the books in his cabin in a rage that he let Brendon go so easily. He wanted to run and go back, but he knew there was no way he could without Brendon freaking out. His place was here in this cabin and that wouldn’t change.

Brendon didn’t move from his bed the entire day, even when Spencer came barging in, which a lot of people tended to do lately, and demanded to know what the hell happened. Apparently news travels fast among hunters... Brendon didn’t say anything other than ‘I’m going back with him’ before curling back up under his sheets -on the side that Ryan had slept on- and basically hiding from everyone and everything. The next morning after he’d woken up, he didn’t hesitate when he started packing a small bag that was just big enough for a pair of clothes and little things he needed. He did start second-guessing himself after he got halfway to the woods, still unsure if Ryan even wanted him here. In the end, Brendon kept forcing himself to take the next step, first parking the truck, then getting out, and then walking aimlessly into the woods in hopes of finding the cabin again.

Ryan could hear footstep outside of his cabin and he knew he was finished. That guy must’ve been back to kill him, and honestly Ryan wasn’t going to protest. “Just kill me already,” he called out, hiding his face in his hands. He didn’t want to fight back and he thought it was for the best if he would just give up already.

He had been walking forever until he finally found the cabin, only to hear Ryan say what sounded like ‘kill me’ when he got closer. “Ryan?” Brendon called out, slowly opening the door to his cabin and peaking inside to see him with his face hidden in his hands. He spoke carefully in case something was wrong, “Are you okay?”

Ryan’s head shot up immediately at the sound. “Y-You... You came back!” he shot up instantly and hugged him tightly. “Oh god I didn’t think you were going to come back, I’m so sorry...” he whimpered, holding him close.

“I hardly managed staying away as long as I did... I was miserable.” Brendon hugged him back, just standing there and holding him tightly as he spoke. “Right now I’m just so fucking happy to see you, no matter what.” Brendon said, burying his face in his neck.

"I’m so sorry. I’m really sorry," Ryan whimpered as he held Brendon close to his chest. "Please don’t leave me... I can’t take being alone, not after everything… Not again." he begged, looking up at him with pleading eyes.

He had missed being this close to him, even if it was only a short time that they were apart and seemed more than uncomfortable with each other at the time. “It’s okay, it’s okay. You know that I’ll always come back.” Brendon pulled back a bit to look at him with a small smile, “Even if you decide that you don’t want me to.” He teased, kissing his forehead lightly.

"Of course I want you to stay… Stay as long as you want," he murmured and nuzzled into his neck. He couldn’t stand being away from Brendon. He needed him around.

"You sure that you want to tell me that? ‘Cause if it’s as long as I want then you’re gonna be stuck with me for a while." He chuckled, resting his head on top of Ryan’s. "So…About that kiss in the truck, you do realize that you never gave me the chance to kiss back? Or at least for more than two seconds."

"I-I didn’t want you to get mad or pull away… So I just ran… I just needed to feel your lips before I had to leave..." he muttered and buried his face into his chest. "I’m sorry."

“You should stop apologizing so much, it’s perfectly fine.” Brendon pulled him in closer and shook his head slightly, “I only brought it up so I could ask if I could properly kiss you this time.”

"Of course," he murmured, leaning in and kissing him passionately. He loved the feeling of Brendon’s soft lips against his own. He felt safe and like he could be himself around him without having to worry. He smiled, immediately feeling more at ease as he leaned in to kiss him lovingly, there was no doubt that he was falling for him even in the short time they’d known each other. Brendon reached down and held his hands lightly in his own, entwining their fingers together.

Ryan blushed softly and pulled away, looking up at Brendon with a small smile. “I...” Ryan bit his lip nervously. Should he say it? Or was it too soon? Brendon still lightly held his hands even after he pulled away, looking at him with bright eyes and waiting for him to finish what he was saying. "I-I think I love you…" Ryan finally whispered, looking down at their hands with bright red cheeks.

His eyes widened momentarily before he smiled brightly and leaned his forehead against Ryan’s. “That’s… I’m really glad you think so.” He said, pausing for a moment. “Wanna know why? ‘Cause I’m pretty sure that I love you too.” Brendon murmured.

Ryan almost felt discouraged, but then smiled widely and hugged him back tightly. He was so happy he said it back. “I’m so happy...”

“I’m glad that we can both finally be happy… Flaws and all included.” Brendon nuzzled into his neck, placing feather-light kisses along his skin. “And I do love you, more than anyone I have in a long time.”

"You know how happy that makes me?" Ryan said with a smile, looking up at him. "You have literally no flaws, so I don’t know what you’re talking about."

Brendon chuckled, “How happy?” He asked, even though he could see it by the look on his face.

"So happy that I feel like I could cry," he admitted, chuckling and hiding his face. His eyes were a bright yellow which was a clear indication that he was telling the truth.

**Author's Note:**

> YAY THEY LOVE EACH OTHER  
> So I'm not entirely sure if I should write another part to this, I'm tempted but i'm not sure  
> We shall see


End file.
